Apple Blossom by Louis MacNeice

Apple Blossom

by Louis MacNeice 

The first blossom was the best blossom

For the child who never had seen an orchard;

For the youth whom whiskey had led astray

The morning after was the first day.

The first apple was the best apple

For Adam before he heard the sentence;

When the flaming sword endorsed the Fall

The trees were his to plant for all.

The first ocean was the best ocean

For the child from streets of doubt and litter;

For the youth for whom the skies unfurled

His first love was his first world.

But the first verdict seemed the worst verdict

When Adam and Eve were expelled from Eden;

Yet when the bitter gates clanged to

The sky beyond was just as blue.

For the next ocean is the first ocean

And the last ocean is the first ocean

And, however often the sun may rise,

A new thing dawns upon our eyes.

For the last blossom is the first blossom

And the first blossom is the best blossom

And when from Eden we take our way

The morning after is the first day.